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Doug Rattmann

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Ratman infobox.jpg
Doug Rattmann
Biographical information
Homeworld

Earth

Died

Some time after the events of Portal 2: Lab Rat[1]

Function(s) / Belongings
Rank / Occupation

Programmer[2]

Physical description
Species

Human

Gender

Male[2][3]

Hair color

Dark brown[3]

Eye color

Light blue[3] (may have anisocoria)

Chronological and political information
Era(s)
Faction

Aperture Science

Game information
Voiced by

Marc Laidlaw

Designer(s)
"Reality is a story the mind tells itself. An artificial structure conjured into being by the calcium ion exchange of a million synaptic firings. A truth so strange it can only be lied into existence. And our mind can lie. Never doubt it..."
― Doug Rattmann[src]

Doug Rattmann,[2][3] also known as the Ratman,[5] is a former Aperture Science employee, and one of the few survivors of GLaDOS' flooding of the Enrichment Center with neurotoxin. Rattmann was introduced through his murals in Portal, and his story was expanded on in Portal 2: Lab Rat.

Biography[edit]

Background[edit]

When working for Aperture, Rattmann was charged with the maintenance of the Aperture Image Format, an interactive graphics format created in 1985. He had access to Aperture Science's bulletin board system, with the login "drattmann" and the password "h0nee".[2] While he apparently never directly took part in GLaDOS' construction, it appears that he was somehow involved in the work on the modern version of the portal gun.

Rattmann and Henry chat while the latter is working on GLaDOS.

At some point late in GLaDOS' construction, Doug went to see his colleague Henry while he was working on the AI in her chamber. Henry praised their technological advances, stating that artificial consciousness is the next frontier. Doug was not convinced by the progress, since GLaDOS attempted to kill everyone each time she was turned on, forcing them to switch her off. Later, Doug came across Henry while he designing the Morality Core. Henry asked him to turn it on, then Doug asked him what it was, to which Henry answer it was the latest in AI inhibition technology, that it would act on GLaDOS as her conscience. Rattmann believed it was insufficient to stop her murderous intentions, arguing that "you can always ignore your conscience".[3]

Rattmann jumps into the file room.

When GLaDOS was activated in 200-,[6] she became self-aware, locked down the facility, and flooded the Enrichment Center with deadly neurotoxins. Rattmann was one of the only survivors, and GLaDOS turned onto taunting him about his schizophrenia. She attempted to convince him that his situation was a result of his paranoia, but he ignored her, and got a hunch about a Test Subject, Chell, who he thought could make a difference. He fled to the file room and found her file. It said that she should not be tested, as she is abnormally stubborn and "never ever" gives up. Convinced she is the one he needs to stop GLaDOS, he put her on top of the Test Subject list, so that she would be the first to be picked in the next test.[3]

Rattmann then spent the remaining period before Chell's awakening surviving in the Test Chambers and maintenance areas of Aperture. Having only two pills left, he kept them for the day GLaDOS would wake Chell. Consequently, he slowly lost his sanity, his schizophrenia completely taking him over. He spent hours scribbling on walls, painting murals, graffiti and arrows and hints for the day Chell would wake up and try to escape, and became obsessed with the Companion Cube that his schizophrenia made talk to him and give him advice, acting as his source of logic.[3] It also appears he had several Cubes, as his scribblings show him mourning over the loss of one. His scribbles and artwork on the walls could be a temporary fix to his illness. This can be inferred from Rattmann reading a book called, "Art Therapy" in the comic Portal 2: Lab Rat.

Appearances[edit]

Portal[edit]

The second Ratman den, near Test Chamber 17.

Although unseen for the entirety of Portal, Rattmann is made aware to Chell through his "Ratman dens", in which he appears to have been living for some time (sleeping on unfolded Aperture Science boxes, eating beans, and drinking milk and water), and his frantic scribblings and graffiti can be seen abundantly. The first den is found near Test Chamber 16, behind a broken wall held open by two Weighted Storage Cubes. It is here that the well-known statement "the cake is a lie" is written in black. The scribblings in Test Chamber 17 reveal further information, notably his obsession with the Companion Cube.

After Chell escapes incineration at the hands of GLaDOS in Test Chamber 19, she finds more and more of Rattmann's scribblings of help and warning, and the directions he previously laid to guide her through the hazardous innards of the facility.

Rattmann's hints stop just before GLaDOS' massive Sentry Turret ambush, suggesting he was unable to go on due to his lack of equipment against the Turrets, and that he trusted Chell to overcome them with her stubbornness and above all her ASHPD.

Portal 2: Lab Rat[edit]

Doug passing out after being wounded by Sentry Turrets.

In Portal 2: Lab Rat, Rattmann is shown to be observing Chell during her quest through the final stages of Portal, and takes his two last anti-psychotic pills he was saving for that day in order to have a clear head. After Chell destroys GLaDOS, he follows her to the surface, considering taking the opportunity to escape once and for all, but upon seeing her being dragged back inside by the Party Escort Bot, he begins to feel guilty. Feeling he is responsible for her predicament (as he put her on top of the Test Subject list), he goes back into the facility to rescue her, despite his Companion Cube's objections.

Back in the facility, he discovers that Chell has been placed in a Cryo-Chamber in the Relaxation Center. He soon discovers that GLaDOS' explosion blew the main power grid, and that all the Cryo-Chambers are off-line. He attempts to reach Cryo-Control to rescue Chell, but without the advice of his Companion Cube, which is no longer talking due to the pills he previously took, he is incapable of choosing the right direction, and is shot in the leg by a Turret, falling unconscious. Upon regaining consciousness, he is back into his psychosis, discovering that he can no longer rescue Chell. However, the Companion Cube informs him that he can still save her by patching her Cryo-Chamber into the Reserve Grid, placing her in stasis for an unspecified amount of time, but saving her from death. After doing so, he goes to sleep in a Relaxation Vault.

Portal 2[edit]

The ASHPD in a Test Chamber filled with Ratman graffiti.

The exact fate of Doug Rattmann is unknown. In an interview from March 26, 2010, Valve said that he has died some time after the events of Portal.[1] However, at the end of Lab Rat, Doug is seen crawling into a Relaxation Vault after saving Chell.

Additional scribblings can be seen in Portal 2. Early during the game, Chell is required to enter one of his dens to find the single-portal ASHPD, in a room covered in murals detailing the events from GLaDOS's creation up to the end of Portal, as well as a large mural of Chell. Furthermore, one of the Portal 2 Achievements requires finding the hidden signal in one of Rattmann's dens. The Achievement icon is similar to that of the "Transmission Received" Achievement added to Portal during the Portal ARG. To complete it, an Aperture Science Radio must be taken into one of the Ratman dens (specifically, the one where the radio is received because the Aperture Science Vital Apparatus Vent is full of garbage). It produces an SSTV signal similar to the radios in the Portal ARG, showing an image of a Companion Cube on the Moon.

Perpetual Testing Initiative[edit]

In one of the many alternative universes the player passes through on his journey, a younger Cave Johnson, former Junior Claim Representative of Aperture, is accusing Doug Rattmann, the president of Aperture Science in this universe, of embezzlement.

Lego Dimensions[edit]

Two of the four Rattmann appearances in the game.

The non-canonical Lego Dimensions features several Rattmann scribblings here and there, as well as a hidden den featuring a Lego version of his portrait of Chell, with wings. Rattmann himself makes several brief appearances in Test Chambers 02, 06, 07, and 09, in his only direct appearance in any game. Players must be quick to get a glimpse of him as he tends to flee when spotted.[7]

Appearance[edit]

As seen in Portal 2: Lab Rat, Rattmann appears to have a pupil larger than the other. This may be anisocoria, a condition characterized by an unequal size of the pupils. As for his face, his errancies in the Enrichment Center and his slow loss of sanity made it unrecognizable, gaunt and exhausted, with disheveled hair and beard, while he remained in scientist attire (labcoat and shirt), likely the most available outfit in the facility.

Personality and skills[edit]

The effects of Doug's medication on his mind.

Prior to the activation of GLaDOS, despite already being schizophrenic and taking medication, Rattmann was otherwise quite sane and level-headed, and was skeptical and worried with the work on GLaDOS, believing that conscience was not enough to stop her, as opposed to Henry's enthusiasm. However, as time passed when he was trapped in the facility, he grew increasingly insane, and started being obsessed with the Companion Cube.

The results of the Aperture Science Collaborative Disposition Test tell that Rattmann is the quiet, artistic type, happy to ponder the solution to a puzzle in quiet solitude, and that compatible cooperative test partners include introspective loners, deaf-mute invisible people, and mannequins.

The scribblings seen in Portal show that Rattmann is an educated man, having a wide-ranging knowledge in the field of physics, and quoting both Dickinson and Longfellow to express himself over the loss of his Weighted Companion Cube, as well as a small reference to Auden. Rattmann's drawings range from simple scribbles to more elaborate artwork, such as a giant mural of Chell in Portal 2. Aside from his scribblings, Rattmann appears to have adept technical skills. Apparently using the login name and password he managed to procure, he was able to open up certain wall sections in Test Chambers or make Vital Apparatus Vents dispense more Weighted Storage Cubes. He is also able to create makeshift stoves out of computer heat sinks.

Related Achievements[edit]

Portal: Still Alive
Ratmanstale.jpg Rat's Tale (15G)
Find all the Ratman dens. (Reuses a handprint texture seen in-game.)
Portal 2
CLEAN UP.jpg Final Transmission (20G)
Find the hidden signal in one of the Rat Man's dens.

Trivia[edit]

Hidden J in one of Rattman dens.
  • When Portal 2 was officially announced on March 5, 2010,[8] several alphanumerics were underlined in the text, as part of the Portal ARG. When reorganized together, these letters gave the words "drattmann" and "h0nee", which are a second set of usernames and passwords (belonging to Doug Rattmann) for the BBS number (425) 822-5251. Upon entering them, one has access to data that will eventually give access to a program to read Aperture Image Format files.[2]
  • In Lab Rat, Rattmann is seen reading a book called Art Therapy: The Bennet Way. Art Therapy is also the name of the co-op testing course in the Peer Review DLC for Portal 2.
  • On map "escape_00" in Portal there is a hidden Rattman den with J made out of handprints on the wall, which is likely a developer signature. To see this player must use cheat "mat_fullbright 1".
  • Marc Laidlaw, creator of Half Life's story, voiced Rattman in the song from the Portal 2 soundtrack, "Ghost of Rattman", the same used for some of the dens of Portal 2.

Gallery[edit]

Portal[edit]

Portal 2: Lab Rat[edit]

Portal 2[edit]

Pre-release[edit]

Retail[edit]

Other[edit]

Graffiti list[edit]

Portal[edit]

What follows is a list of all graffiti, scribblings and Aperture Science posters left by the Ratman in his dens. The texture files are used for better clarity.

Texture image Location found Transcription Comments
Overlay scrawlings002a.png

the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie

Hello? Can I help you?

Among two Aperture Science posters, Rattmann wrote five times "the cake is a lie", drew a Weighted Storage Cube falling on a Sentry Gun through a Vital Apparatus Vent, as well as what may be an Aperture Science High Energy Pellet, with 180 days crossed out, with arrows directed to the High Energy Pellet. "Hello? Can I help you?" is said by a Sentry Gun.
Overlay scrawlings006a.png
Test Chamber 17.
(testchmb_a_13)

The vital apparatus vent will deliver.
oh it will
WILL
The weighted companion cube DOES speak.
R.I.P.
Superstition, perceiving inanimate objects as alive, and hallucinations
I'm not hallucinating. You are.
The companion cube would never desert me. Dessert. So long...
Cake. Ha ha Cake. A lie.
The companion cube would never lie to me
NEVER

Login: cjohnson
Password: tier3"
Trust me

  • A "The Girls of Aperture Science" calendar dated 1983 is on the right, with hearts beside it.
  • The login name and password (which are referring to Cave Johnson and his three tiered program) may give an explanation as to how Rattmann opened up certain areas of the Test Chambers and gained access to other areas of the facility, etc. They can also be used on ApertureScience.com to gain administrator access.
Overlay scrawlings006b.png
Test Chamber 17.
(testchmb_a_13)

Where are you? I will find you.

COMPANION CUBE
You said to take care of it.
How can I
You wouldn't let me.
I should disregard your advice. Leave me alone!

STOP WATCHING

Though earth and man are gone,
I thought the cube would last forever.
I WAS WRONG

  • The left part consists of separate words mixed with hearts and pictures of the Companion Cube in situ.
  • In "COMPANION CUBE", every alternate letter is black or red.
  • "You said to take care of it..." is written around an Aperture Science poster, with the picture of a Companion Cube pasted on the head of the poster's Bendy.
  • "I should disregard your advice. Leave me alone!" and "STOP WATCHING" are probably addressed to GLaDOS.
  • "Though earth and man are gone" is an extract from Emily Brontë's poem "No Coward Soul Is Mine".
  • "I thought the cube would last forever." and "I WAS WRONG" is a pastiche of the third verse of W. H. Auden's "Funeral Blues", "I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong."
Overlay scrawlings006c.png
Test Chamber 17.
(testchmb_a_13)

Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me
The cube had food and maybe ammo
and immortality.

Why? (written in red 18 times with several question marks)

Not in cruelty,
Not in wrath,
The REAPER came today;
An ANGEL visited
this gray path,
And took the cube away.

  • The original picture of the family with Companion Cubes pasted on their heads, titled "Family watching television", was taken around 1958, and it part of the National Archives and Records Administration photo archives.
Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me;
The Carriage held but just Ourselves
And Immortality.
  • "Why? Why? Why?" surrounds a Companion Cube with a skull replacing the heart, referring to the death of the cube.
O, not in cruelty, not in wrath,
The Reaper came that day;
'Twas an angel visited the green earth,
And took the flowers away.
Overlay scrawlings001a.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (testchmb_a_15 and escape_01)

the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie.
the cake is a lie

Overlay scrawlings004a.png
Test Chamber 16.
(testchmb_a_11)
Used in Test Chamber 16 to indicate where to place portals to defeat the Sentry Guns.
Overlay scrawlings004b.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (escape_00)
Used in Test Chamber 16 to indicate where to place portals to defeat the Sentry Guns. Also used to cross out the cake image in the fourth Ratman den.
Overlay scrawlings003a.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Test Chamber 17.
    (testchmb_a_13)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (testchmb_a_15 and escape_01)
Help Used several times. Rattmann was desperately asking for help.
Overlay handprint.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Test Chamber 17.
    (testchmb_a_13)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (testchmb_a_15 and escape_01)
Found in most places where Rattmann has been. It is used for the "Rat's Tale" Achievement logo featured in Portal: Still Alive.
Overlay scrawlings005a.png
  • Test Chamber 17.
    (testchmb_a_13)
  • Test Chamber 18.
    (testchmb_a_14)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (escape_01)
BEEP

SHE'S WATCHING YOU

Refers to GLaDOS watching Test Subjects through the security cameras.
Overlay scrawlings005b.png
Test Chamber 18.
(testchmb_a_14)
Another way Rattmann chose to show he does not believe in the cake anymore.
Overlay scrawlings exit01.png
Maintenance areas.
(testchmb_a_15, escape_00 and escape_01)
Used several times to indicate an exits. Imitates the standard stick figure exit sign seen above Test Chamber exits.
Overlay scrawlings exit02.png
Maintenance areas.
(escape_00 and escape_01)
Over here Used several times to indicate directions.
Overlay scrawlings arrow01.png
Maintenance areas.
(testchmb_a_15, escape_00 and escape_01)
Used several times to indicate directions. Its orientation may vary.
Overlay scrawlings arrow02.png
Maintenance areas.
(escape_01 and escape_02)
It is the only Ratman scribbling seen in the last maintenance area map, right before the Sentry Gun ambush, and therefore the very last Ratman scribbling.
Cake picture.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Test Chamber 17.
    (testchmb_a_13)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (escape_01)
Official Aperture Science propaganda poster, promoting the "tasty" cake.
Aperture poster001a2.png
  • Test Chamber 16.
    (testchmb_a_11)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (escape_01)
Official Aperture Science propaganda poster, with the motto "A Trusted Friend in Science". It was available to purchase at the Valve Store for a time.
Aperture poster002a2.png
  • Test Chamber 17.
    (testchmb_a_13)
  • Test Chamber 18.
    (testchmb_a_14)
  • Maintenance areas.
    (testchmb_a_15 and escape_01)
Official Aperture Science propaganda poster, with the motto "Not Never But NOW". It was available to purchase at the Valve Store for a time.
Aperture poster003a2.png
Test Chamber 18.
(testchmb_a_14)
Official Aperture Science propaganda poster, with the motto "Courage is Not the Absence of Fear". It was available to purchase at the Valve Store for a time. Features a High Energy Pellet about to collide with a stick figure.

Portal 2[edit]

A gallery of the artwork left by Doug Rattmann through the Enrichment Center made by artist Andrea Wicklund. When standing near most of the graffiti, a muffled, rambling voice can be heard. The voice is also featured in the song Ghost of Rattman on the Portal 2 soundtrack.

Texture image Location found Transcription Comments
Ratman arrow04.png
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Follow Used to indicate direction.
Ratman art 05.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Based based on concept art for Portal.
Ratman art 10.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Shows GLaDOS flooding the facility with neurotoxin, while Rattmann hides behind a Companion Cube. Can also be seen in the fifth page of Portal 2: Lab Rat.
Ratman art 03.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Shows GLaDOS luring Chell, using the Cake, while worried Rattmann watches. Can also be seen in the fifth page of Portal 2: Lab Rat.
Diorama tile1 04.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Shows Chell emerging victorious against GLaDOS, while Rattmann holds up the Portal Gun. A slightly different version of this graffiti is featured in The Final Hours of Portal 2. Can also be seen in the fifth page of Portal 2: Lab Rat.
Lab Rat cover clean.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Shows Chell. Also used for Portal 2: Lab Rat cover.
Diorama tile1 06 00 00 00.jpg
In the area below Test Chamber 02.
(sp_a1_intro3)
Shows various lunar phases. Not all parts of this graffiti can be seen in-game since the panel with this artwork lacks some of its tiles. In addition, as seen here, the image is backwards in-game. The mural was originally different, as seen here. Can also be seen in the fifth page of Portal 2: Lab Rat.
Ratman diorama01.png
In an observation room near Test Chamber 04.
(sp_a1_intro4)
Unreason Shows a variety of topics related to theoretical physics, such as a depiction of Schrödinger's cat or the Lorentz factor (written as γ = (1-v2/c2)-1/2).
Ratman art 11.jpg
In an area near Test Chamber 03.
(sp_a2_dual_lasers)
Too many variables
Ratman thenational 02.png
In an area near Test Chamber 03.
(sp_a2_dual_lasers)

Takes your mind
Exile
219
Sucker's luck
Exile

The same words are featured in the song "Exile Vilify".
Ratman thenational 01.png
In an area near Test Chamber 03.
(sp_a2_dual_lasers)

Vilify
Don't even try
Feels like a trial

The same words are featured in the song "Exile Vilify".
Ratman art 15.jpg
In an area near Test Chamber 06.
(sp_a2_trust_fling)

Nothing is real
Smooth Jazz Fails.

The second line is a reference to the Smooth Jazz.
Ratman art 09.jpg

This thing like seeing
Only not with my eyes

Ratman art 02.jpg
In an area near Test Chamber 12.
(sp_a2_birdge_the_gap)

There is no magic
Only
Lost
Physics
Who are you?

Ratman art 17.jpg
In an area near Test Chamber 16.
(sp_a2_laser_vs_turret)

One two three four five six seven
One two three four five six seven (x)
1234567 1234567
Unmorality

Ratman art 12.jpg
In an area near Test Chamber 17.
(sp_a2_pull_the_rug)

Tenacity
The bell invites
Hear the turret for it is knell
That summons to heaven or to hell

Some parts of the graffiti can be seen in the first page of Portal 2: Lab Rat. A similar tenacity diagram can be seen in the last panel of the comic.
Ratman art 06.jpg
Game files only.

Circulous
Logic
Tell me not in binary numbers
Life is but a madman's dream
All the frozen testers slumber
And walls are not what they seem

Shows ATLAS and P-body traveling through the Pipe Network.
Ratman art 13.jpg
Game files / The Final Hours of Portal 2 only.

Armstrong

Ratman art 14.jpg
Game files / The Final Hours of Portal 2 only.

All i want is a life without pain
"Tough" said God

Ratman art 16.jpg
Game files / The Final Hours of Portal 2 only. inGlatiate
Ratman scrawling05.png
Game files only. Sarcasmic The same looking mouth, though with a word "Vilify", is featured in another graffiti.
Early Portal chamber graffiti ashpd.jpg
In the early area below Test Chamber 02. Shows various numbers and scribbles, and a person.

List of appearances[edit]

Main games[edit]

Other[edit]

References[edit]

Doug Rattmann
Combine OverWiki has more images related to Doug Rattmann.
  1. 1.0 1.1 {{IA|20100330191747/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2010/03/26/special-edition-podcast-portal-2.aspx%7CSpecial Edition Podcast: Portal 2|Game Informer (March 26, 2010)
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Portal ARG
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Portal 2: Lab Rat
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Expanding the World of Portal 2 on IGN (April 6, 2011)
  5. Portal commentary
  6. Aperture Science: A History on Game Informer (March 24, 2010) (archived)
  7. FOUND! Doug Rattmann in Lego Dimensions! on Brick To Life
  8. Portal 2 Announced - March 5, 2010 - on Steampowered.com

External links[edit]